TIME |
TITLE |
1:00 PM |
Welcome to Faculty, Teams, and Guests |
1:10 PM |
MQP 1 – Humanoid Animatronic Learning Simulator for Medical Interactive Training (H.A.L. S.M.I.T.)
The goal of this project was to design and develop an autonomous, modular, easily operable animatronic head to enhance realism in medical simulations. The technology is expensive for many medical programs, and manikins have limited capacity for complex tasks. This project addressed such gaps by producing a low cost head and neck manikin capable of performing complex simulations. A previous prototype was adapted by addressing areas of improvement for medical use. The target capabilities for the manikin included airway management, and level of consciousness and circulatory assessment. Ultimately, subsystems were tested and a final design was produced with the potential for additional functionality and wide applicability to the medical field.
Poster: HAL_SMIT_RBE_Final_Poster.pptx
|
1:20 PM |
MQP 2 – Active Telepresence Assistance for Supervisory Control: A User Study with a Multi-Camera Tele-Nursing Robot
Supervisory control of a humanoid robot in a manipulation task requires coordination of remote perception with robot action, which becomes more demanding with multiple moving cameras available for task supervision. We explore the use of autonomous camera control and selection to reduce operator workload and improve task performance in a supervisory control task. We design a novel approach to autonomous camera selection and control, and evaluate the approach in a user study which revealed that autonomous camera control does improve task performance and operator experience, but autonomous camera selection requires further investigation to benefit the operator’s confidence and maintain trust in the robot autonomy.
Poster: TeleNursing_poster.pptx
|
1:30 PM |
MQP 3 – Next Gen of Wearable Robotics
The purpose of this project was to create a prosthetic wrist that utilizes Hydro Muscles to actuate motion to complete simple tasks. This project consisted of the design of a wrist joint with two rotational degrees of freedom, an attachment to mimic the gripping motion with Hydro Muscle actuated fingers, a compact pump actuation system to convert rotational movement from a small motor to linear expansion of a Hydro Muscle, and the development of controls and feedback to control the actuation. Goals for this project were centered on ideas of controlled usage scenarios and real life implementation.
Poster: Next Gen_poster.pptx
|
1:40 PM |
MQP 4 – Car-Snow Clearing Drone
The purpose of this MQP was to research, design, analyze, and test a robotic device to remove snow and ice off of cars. Snow on cars is a hazard for many drivers across the world. Drones are widely used in society, including agricultural drones for spraying pesticides on crops. Lightweight, yet strong, carbon fiber was used in addition to 3-D printed parts. The flying and spraying components were each tested in addition to proving the concept with multiple FEA simulations on individual components. Computer vision was used to identify how much snow remained on the car and what areas were already sprayed. The primary focus of the project was to come up with a device to aid society and potentially sell to consumers.
Poster: Car-Snow Clearing Drone MQP PPD Poster.pptx
|
1:50 PM |
MQP 5 – The M.O.L.E. System: Autonomous, Trenchless Tunneling Robot
Digging tunnels is a necessary part of many construction and infrastructure projects, but most small-scale tunnel-boring methods presently require a trench which can disrupt aspects of daily life on the surface. There are trenchless methods, but they require that the tunnel be completely or almost completely straight. The goal of this project was to design a self-correcting machine capable of producing complex tunnels without the use of a trench. Early stages of design considered many different alternatives for steering, anchoring, and boring. A prototype was constructed as a proof of kinematic concept with full electronic and computational systems onboard. Using the prototype, a report was generated detailing the improvements that would need to be made for a high-budget and marketable iteration of the device because, while the prototype is not capable of travelling underground, it provides proof that the kinematic designs are sound.
Poster: Tunneling Robot RBE Poster.pptx
|
2:00 PM |
MQP 6 – Telenursing RoboPuppet 2019-20
RoboPuppet is a scale-model arm of ReThink Robotics’ Baxter used for intuitive remote control. The arm contains joint angle sensors and motors which allow for gravity compensation and limited haptic feedback. The project includes a ROS package for controlling Baxter in real life and simulation, with a basic real-time GUI for calibration and debugging. This platform is ideal for helping nurses work remotely with patients in high-risk and contaminated environments.
Poster: RoboPuppet Poster FINAL.pptx
|
2:10 PM |
MQP 7 – Demining Autonomous System
The use of PMN-1 anti-personnel landmines, along with poor documentation and scale of their deployment, has led to a humanitarian crisis. Current methods of landmine removal, including military-grade equipment, trained animals, and manual deminers, are dangerous, ineffective, and expensive. This project built on the work of previous MQPs to develop a more robust rover for autonomous landmine detection and a more accurate drone for landmine detonation. Additionally, the team developed an easy-to-use application that combines the two systems and provides access to non-technical users.
Poster: demining_poster.pptx
|
2:20 PM |
MQP 8 – Ultrasound Sensing for Prosthetic Control
Amputation in the arm results in decreased capability for individuals to manipulate their surroundings effectively. Advances in active prostheses have sought to augment these individuals with a prosthetic that returns some, but ideally all, functionality back to the individual. Specifically in transradial amputations, many of the muscles required to move the hand are still intact. Ultrasound can be used to produce a cross-sectional image of the forearm and the muscles present. Through the utilization of ultrasound images, assessments can be made on the muscles state and their effect on the downstream finger movements. Building off of prior work done in this field, this project aims to demonstrate use of ultrasound in prosthetic control. To accomplish this, we designed and analyzed a prosthetic design to implement this technology, built the prosthetic, and performed an assessment on the optimal probe orientation on the forearm.
Poster: Ultrasound MQP Poster.pptx
|
2:30 PM |
MQP 9 – SCREAM 2.0: Superelastic Continuum Robot for Endoscopic Articulation and Manipulation
The objective of this project is to investigate robotic platforms to enhance a physician’s dexterity in minimally invasive endoscopic surgery. We present the design and construction of a continuum robotic manipulator consisting of two concentric notched tubes capable of providing pan and tilt degrees of freedom. Building the manipulator out of tubes enables the passage of a variety of surgical instruments through the tubes’ open lumen. The robot is equipped with a quick release mechanism which enables hot swapping of instruments during a procedure. Positional control of the robot is based on its inverse kinematics, which is approximated by means of a Newton-Raphson method combined with a geometric approach to generate an initial solution. Using an initial guess close to the desired solution ensures fast convergence. We report on experimental evidence that verifies the positional accuracy of the robot. Out of the many applications where we believe our robot would be helpful, one where it would help immensely is the endoscopic treatment of laryngeal tumors, which affect 1 in 40 people worldwide at any given time. These tumors are challenging to treat endoscopically due to the lack of articulation in commercially available surgical instruments. Other potential applications include ear surgery and kidney surgery.
Poster: SCREAM2 Final Poster.pptx
|
2:40 PM |
MQP 10 – WPI Mascot Robot
Robotics is a signature program of WPI, however, there is still an opportunity to further integrate robotics into WPI’s image. While it is not the only important part of WPI’s identity, the robotics work its students and faculty produce are iconic and recognizable to people both in and out of STEM fields. The goal of this project is to design a prototype of a mascot robot for WPI that anyone can interact with to see and feel what WPI is all about. The aim of this project is not to replace Gompei, but to add to the Gompei experience with a little robot flair, as is WPI tradition.
The WPI Robot Mascot MQP is designing and building a robot goat to be a companion mascot to Gompei. Robotics is a signature program of WPI, and this MQP seeks to further represent and demonstrate the iconic robotics work done by both students and faculty. It would be impossible for a single MQP to develop a robot mascot that reflects the impressive robotics achievements at WPI. This preliminary MQP involved design and prototyping work for 5-DoF head and neck assembly. This includes work on the mechanical, electrical, and software systems of the robot, as well as the initial requirements and project planning done in collaboration with various stakeholders at WPI. Future MQP teams will further develop the robot, and it will serve as a continuously evolving platform to showcase the traditions and experiences at WPI.
Poster: WS20_PPD_Poster.pptx
|
2:50 PM |
MQP 11 – A Stride Towards the Elimination of Consumer Waste: Development of a Reusable Cup Machine
This project pursues an autonomous solution for reducing single use cup waste through a reusable cup sharing kiosk. A design concept suitable for this type of program must receive a dirty cup from a consumer and return a clean cup ready-for-use. Such a device must have washing, drying, storing, and dispensing capabilities. The design process consists of three main steps: brainstorming, analyzing, and comparing with a design matrix. The final product prioritizes compactness and simplicity of mechanical systems. Though significant progress was made in the implementation of the proposed design, there is still considerable work to be done to finish this prototype due to the interruption of the semester by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Poster: Reusable Cup Machine Poster.pptx
|
3:00 PM |
MQP 12 – DR-Swarm2
Robots are envisioned to work alongside humans. However, humans struggle to interpret the state and goals of a robot. The use of multiple robots further exacerbates this issue. To solve this problem, we propose Dr. Swarm 2, an augmented reality (AR) application built on the Magic Leap. The application conveys robot states and goals through virtual artifacts overlaid with the real world. The overlay provides concise information in a manner un-achievable with existing methods.
Posters: drswarm2_control.pptx
drswarm2_visualizations.pptx
|
3:10 PM |
MQP 13 – Chemical Synthesis Robot MQP
The Chemical Synthesis MQP has developed a robotic platform that can automate parts of a chemical synthesis process. For purposes of this MQP, a chemical synthesis consists of reaction, separation, concentration, chromatography, and isolation. Our robotic platform consists of an interconnected network of client lab instruments that are driven by Arduino microcontrollers. In turn, these clients are controlled from a main server that is running LabVIEW. This server converts predefined chemical functions into a sequence of steps that are distributed to the corresponding clients to be executed by the lab instruments. During this MQP, we focused on developing an organic-aqueous separator and a reagent dosing system that incorporates a temperature feedback loop.
Poster:
|
0P3:20 PM |
MQP 14 – NASA Lunabotics: LOADER
We have designed an autonomous mining robot designed to meet the specifications of the 2020 NASA robotic mining competition. The rover is designed to navigate in a moon simulated environment, dig down at least thirty centimeters and return a payload, as well as meet the constraints imposed by the unique operating environment. We addressed the engineering challenges and goals that were faced, ranging from communication and obstacle avoidance to heat management.
Poster: NASA Lunabotics MQP - LOADER Poster.pptx
|
3:30 PM |
MQP 15 – INNDiE: An Integrated Neural Network Development Environment
Modern machine learning methods are capable of tackling problems that are traditionally difficult or impossible for computers to solve. These methods present a steep learning curve with a wall of information and concepts for novices and often requires expensive computing resources to implement. INNDiE solves these problems by helping the user configure, train, and test neural networks with limited programming and machine learning background knowledge via a graphical user interface. INNDiE also supports training neural networks in the cloud which reduces the cost of training a network.
Poster: INNDiE Poster.pptx
|
3:40 PM |
MQP 16 – Robotic Water Monitoring
With devastating funding cuts propagating through environmental agencies countrywide, the monitoring of local water bodies has been one of the essential services to be curtailed. The health of every body of water is crucial to the diverse aquatic ecosystems as well as the human populations who reside near their shores. Poor water quality has a disastrous impact on a region much larger than the body's footprint, and changes are rarely reversible. Although sampling is critical, the process is time and resource intensive meaning most bodies of water are either unmonitored, or sampled by volunteer groups. The Robotic Water Monitoring boat is a tool to expedite sampling, enabling the state to better allocate scarce resources by significantly increasing the quantity and quality of water samples.
Poster:
|
3:50 PM |
MQP 17 – Modular N-Link Smart Robotic Arm
Today, 2.6 million robots have been deployed worldwide for industrial applications, allowing us to produce, sort, and create products faster. Often, these robots require maintenance every 3,850 hours and have downtimes that yield production resulting in loss of efficiency and increase the cost. The goal of this MQP is to develop a modular robotic arm with n-links that can position its end effector in a 3D task space depending on the number of links attached. It is also a priority that the arm is fault-tolerant and can be removed and attached in real-time without requiring a reboot. Creating this arm will demonstrate how a modular robotic arm can operate in a dynamic task space by adding various links and decrease malfunction maintenance time with the improvement of fault tolerance.
Poster: Modular_Robot_Arm_MQP_POSTER.pptx
|
4:00 PM |
Thanks and reminder to join again tomorrow! |